Six people, including three children, killed in knife attack at Chinese preschool

A man with a knife killed six people and wounded one other on Monday at a preschool in southeastern China, police and local news reported on Monday.

A 25-year-old male was arrested following the 7:40 am attack in Lianjiang, a city in the Guangdong province with a population of 1.87 million people. A police investigation is currently underway.

Employees at Lianjiang police headquarters who released a statement declined to give more details.

An unidentified witness allegedly told local reporters that the attacker’s child had been struck earlier by the car of one of the people killed at the school. 

A spokeswoman for the city government said that the victims included one teacher, two parents and three students.

She did not offer details about the identities or ages of the victims.

Local media outlet, Dafeng News, cited a video posted online that appeared to show a man carrying a knife walking past the preschool playground. It also referred to online footage showing at least four people in a pool of blood outside the school.

China strictly prohibits citizens from owning firearms, and there has been a spate of stabbings in recent years.

Fatal attacks specifically targeting schools have occurred nationwide, prompting authorities to step up security around schools.

For fear that copycat acts might follow, authorities in the capital Beijing have prohibited state media from publishing full details of Monday’s attack.